My Wines

My Cellar

Currently six members of the Symington family are fully engaged in the management of Dow’s, they represent the 12th and 13th generations involved in the Port trade via their great grandmother Beatrice Atkinson and over 350 years since their ancestors played a significant role in laying the foundations of the Port trade. Together with the family’s other Port firms, Dow’s is the only surviving in... Read more

Currently six members of the Symington family are fully engaged in the management of Dow’s, they represent the 12th and 13th generations involved in the Port trade via their great grandmother Beatrice Atkinson and over 350 years since their ancestors played a significant role in laying the foundations of the Port trade. Together with the family’s other Port firms, Dow’s is the only surviving independent Port producer in the hands of just one family amongst all the great historic Port companies.
Following the great investments made in vineyards in the late 19th century, the company was one of the first to build a modern winery in the region in 1964, later to be adapted to become one of the first wineries with temperature control in all its fermentation tanks. In 1997, the company built a new winery at Quinta do Sol, widely acknowledged as one of the most innovative in Portugal. This was a major investment for the Symington family.
The company’s commitment to top quality vineyard ownership, winemaking and the finest Ports remains at the heart of this family business. Peter Symington and his son Charles, Dow’s principal wine makers, have between them been nominated ‘Fortified Wine Maker of the Year’ at the International Wine Challenge a record seven times. These awards are testament to Dow’s reputation as one of the finest premium Port producers. Read less